español / castellano / spanish

"If you talk to a man in a language he understands, that goes to his head. If you talk to him in his language, that goes to his heart." - Nelson Mandela

“Si hablas a un hombre en un lenguaje que comprende, eso llega a su cabeza. Si le hablas en su lenguaje, eso llega a su corazón”. —Nelson Mandela

This quote embodies the importance I placed on learning Spanish (specifically Castellano Spanish) this year. To be able to fully communicate with those in my new community, express myself in a language they understand, learn the culture (for me, learning the language is an essential part in learning the culture of a new place), tell if they are joking about me behind my back, so the taxi drivers would not rip me off, put a smile on the faces of those around me when I make mistakes (you might remember the pene (penis) v. peine (comb) story), surprise the people who think I do not understand what they are saying ("No, I will not pay 20% more because I am from the US". "Oh, you speak Spanish?" "Si."), make sure my teens are not cursing or saying things they should not be, understand completely what is going on around me, and fully immerse myself in this one-year adventure. 

 This whole year was a process of immersing myself to learn the language. It was not an easy one, I had to work quite diligently, but I am so thankful I did. I still surprise myself with my Spanish speaking abilities as I find myself thinking, dreaming, working, communicating, and living in Spanish. Many times I end up speaking Spanglish when speaking in English without realizing it (Can you pass me some agua por favor?). And I'm not gonna lie, sometimes whole stories or multiple hours of conversation come out of my mouth completely in Spanish and I feel like it is an out of body experience. I cannot believe I can speak in a pretty much articulate, correct, and elegant way; I feel like it was someone else speaking. The process of learning Spanish is one I do not want to end when I leave Buenos Aires. I am leaving in a few days extremely content with the Spanish level I am currently at but I want to push myself to keep using and strengthening my Spanish when I am back in the United States. 

I know that when someone whose first language is not English speaks to me in English, it warms my heart. Because they are trying. Trying to communicate with me in a way that makes me feel comfortable and most easily able to express myself. I hope I did the same for the wonderful Argentines I met this year. 

Gracias a los argentinos por ayudarme aprender el lenguaje, corregirme cuando cometí errores y tener demasiado paciencia conmigo en este proceso. Castellano es un idioma hermoso y estoy muy contenta que tenía la oportunidad a aprenderlo. Y muchísimo gracias a mi profesor Roberto, no podía hacerlo sin vos!